Girl, Interrupted

How does Kaysen describe her admission to McLean throughout the memoir? Do you think it was ethical for her doctor to persuade Kaysen to admit herself? Explain using evidence from the text.

Kaysen depicts McLean Hospital as both a prison and a refuge. What kind of evidence and explanations does she provide to support these images?

While living at McLean, the author makes several close friends, such as Lisa and Georgina, with whom she spends a lot of her time. Discuss the role of peer pressure in Kaysen’s and other patients’ experiences at McLean using examples from the book.

Most events in Girl, Interrupted take place during the late 1960s. How does this historical setting inform Kaysen’s life experience both in and outside of McLean? Why does she believe the time period contributed to her being admitted to the hospital?

How does Kaysen demonstrate the subjectivity of her diagnosis? How does she argue that a lot of her behavior could be considered a normal part of the teenage experience?

What does Kaysen think prompted her mental health to decline during this period? How does her memory of her experience differ from how teachers, parents and doctors perceived her at the time?

What role does gender play in Kaysen’s experience as a young person in 1960s Boston? Consider her education, work experiences, and admittance and release from McLean.

Choose a person from the book who made an impression on Kaysen. How did they influence her or alter the trajectory of her life? Discuss using examples from the text.